The Best Shoes For Big Kids – Extra Wide And Supportive!

Do you have a child that is overweight and you are having a hard time finding a pair of shoes that are supportive and that are wide enough to FIT the shape of his or her feet?

There are several parents that have contacted me concerned about how their kids have fabulously large, thick feet and are unable to fit into any footwear other than Crocs or slippers. Believe me when I tell you that I understand your frustration of repeated attempts to find a pair of shoes that will fit your child’s feet.

Overweight children put a lot of pressure on their bodies when they walk or exercise, and this leads to foot and leg pain.

I have been working for a specialized children’s shoe store for the last ten years, where we specialize in children with foot and leg problems, but we provide regular shoe fitting as well.

When children are overweight, they are putting extra pressure in their feet and legs, which can lead to foot and leg pain.

Why did I decide to create an article that focuses on shoes for overweight children?

Let’s say that your child starts getting involved in physical activity, the last thing that you want is for your child to be discouraged right away when he or she starts an exercise program and starts feeling pain in the feet, knees, hips, and lower back.

I have fitted several overweight children in the correct pair of shoes, and this means finding a shoe that comes in extra wide widths, comes with a susbtantial, supportive sole, and that is also DEEP.

Do you feel like you have tried different shoe styles in wide and extra wide widths and still feel like you are stuffing and jamming them onto your child’s foot?

No worries, I have fitted some of the widest and deepest shoes for children, and in this article I will provide you with a selection of the best shoes for big kids.

When walking, a child impacts the ground at two times his/her body weight, but when they are running or exercising that impact increases to three times their body weight. Did you know that impact is the #1 cause of foot, leg and back pain? That is why shoes play such a big role in protecting and supporting your children’s feet.

Besides coming in the correct shoe width (extra wide = “XW”), another important feature that the shoes must provide is for them to be DEEP, and I will explain why this feature is so important down below.

Another important feature the shoes must provide is to come with a round toe-box, since this will prevent his/her toes to from overlapping each other. In fact, the wider the toe-box, the better.

Before I provide you with a selection of the best shoes for big kids, let’s take a look at what features the shoes must provide.

Shoes for Overweight Kids – The Features

In order to support and fit the shape of your child’s extra wide feet, the shoes must provide the following features:

Wide toe-box: The shoes must come with a wide toe-box to allow your child to freely move his or her toes and prevent them from rubbing against each other or the side of the shoes, since that can lead to blisters, calluses, and corns.

Depth: The shoes must be deep in order for your child’s feet to sit deeply inside the shoes and prevent their feet from rubbing against the top of the shoes. The deeper the shoes the better, since this means that no matter how wide or thick your child’s feet are, they will fit deeply inside the shoes. This feature will also make it easy for you every time that you have to put your child’s shoes on (since you won’t feel like you are jamming or stuffing the shoes onto your child’s foot).

Extra wide widths: The shoes must come in extra wide widths (“XW”, or “2EE”). Don’t settle for shoes that “fit wider” than others, and always make sure that the shoes are labeled as extra wide.

Substantial sole: The shoes must provide a substantial sole with arch support, in order to minimize the impact that your child’s feet take when they come in contact with the ground, since your child’s is placing a lot of extra pressure on the feet and the legs.

Firm heel counter: The heel counter is the back part of the shoes that provides ankle support. It’s important for the heel counter of the shoes to be firm in order to provide support to your kids’ heels and prevent ankle pain. If you don’t know what the heel counter of the shoes is, take a look at the picture below for clarification:

These are the 3 MOST IMPORTANT features that we must find in the shoes for your child with extra wide feet, but there are other shoe features that are also important to keep your child’s feet healthy.

Lightweight and flexible:The shoes must be supportive, but lightweight and flexible at the same time in order to prevent your child’s feet and legs from easily getting tired.

Breathability: The shoes must be breathable in order to prevent the buildup of bacteria inside the shoes.

The Best Shoes For Big Kids – Wide, Deep, and Supportive!

Now that you know what features a shoe must provide for your child with extra wide feet, let’s take a look at a selection of the best shoes for overweight kids.

The first selection of shoes is for toddlers who have extra wide feet:

This selection of shoes is for older children who are overweight and have extra wide feet:

All of these shoe styles fit “true to size”, which means that you need to provide your child with a half a size to a whole size longer of the size that they measure in the shoe measuring device (Brannock device), in order to allow for growing room.

Are You Providing Your Child With The Correct Shoe Size?

I am always emphasizing to parents to take their children to their local children’s shoe store that they TRUST to be properly fitted for shoes. Shoes that are too long, too narrow, or too wide will lead to blisters, calluses, and corns.

The issue is that most families don’t have a local children’s shoe store where they can take their children to be properly fitted for shoes, so they must end up buying their children’s shoes online.

It’s hard to purchase your children’s shoes online if you are not 100% sure of what shoe size your child needs, that is the reason why I created an article where I describe the simplest, yet most effective way to figure out your child’s shoe size from home:

I want YOU to remember one thing: It doesn’t matter how many features a particular shoe style provides, if the shoes are not fitted properly, your child won’t get any of the benefits that the shoes have to offer, and you will end up creating all sort of foot issues to your child’s feet.

Do you have an overweight child that is suffering from foot or leg pain? Is there a particular shoe style that you have tried for his or her feet that has worked well? Please share your thoughts and experiences below so other parents can benefit from them.

STOP BUYING THE WRONG PAIR OF SHOES FOR YOUR CHILDREN.LET’S START TAKING CARE OF THEIR FEET!

I created this webpage to help parents understand the importance that shoes have in healthy foot development and how they can prevent foot problems in the future.Join the rest of the parents who are taking care of their kid’s feet and get my guide for free: 10 Mistakes Parents Must Avoid When Buying Shoes for their Kids.

Join the rest of the parents who are taking care of their kids’ feet and get my guide for free: The 5 Most Common Mistakes Parents Make when Buying Their Kids’ Shoes

4 Comments on The Best Shoes For Big Kids – Extra Wide And Supportive!

Based on your advice a while back I switched my son to a 680v5 from New Balance. He is not longer complaining of leg and foot pain! Thank you so very much. I have two new questions for you…
1. He is currently wearing a big kid size
7XW. The largest size…. what shoe do we change to when he grows out of these????

2. Is there a GOOD sandle for a child with this size foot that gives good support like the 680v5? ((Or do I just make him always wear athletic shoes?))

Thank You again for your help. When I didn’t understand my child’s pain you helped me find the solution!

I am glad that your child’s foot pain has been greatly reduced! I am always telling parents that something so simple such as providing their children with the correct pair of shoes can have such a positive impact.

About me

I have been fitting children’s shoes and orthotics for ten years at a premier children’s shoe store specializing in proper fit for over forty years. Every week I help hundreds of children find the best shoes to fit their particular feet. Bones in children are not entirely developed and if a shoe is not properly fitted, then the child’s body’s biomechanics can be altered. It doesn't matter what type of feet your kids have (narrow, medium, wide, or extra wide), there is a style of shoe that will work best for their feet, and you WILL find it here!

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